FBI, LAPD arrest dozens in Los Angeles gang investigation

Federal officials announced Tuesday the arrest and indictments of dozens of members of a South Los Angeles gang that allegedly used violence and intimidation to control an area west of downtown’s Skid Row district.

The sting targeted the Five Deuce Broadway Gangster Crips, officials said. At least 45 people were arrested Tuesday, while officials named 72 defendants in a federal indictment outlining two decades of alleged criminal conduct, including murder.

In one incident, two gang members are alleged to have fired into a crowd of people in South L.A. in January 2012, killing 18-year-old Edwin Johns, a former Jefferson High School football star. Johns’ family members said at the time that Johns had no ties to gangs.

The 200-member gang also allegedly sold narcotics near Skid Row, preying on the homeless and drug addicts, the indictment states.

“This gang has terrorized the Broadway corridor for decades,” Los Angeles Police Capt. David Kalowski told reporters, adding the gang has been in operation since at least since the 1970s.

Tuesday’s sweep, overseen by the FBI and Los Angeles Police Department, culminated a three-year investigation called Operation Gremlin Riderz in reference to a violent subset of the gang.

The 213-page indictment provides details into the gang’s rituals, including the use of females to transport drugs and rent residences because members believed women attracted less attention than men. Individuals seeking to join the Broadway Crips had to be “jumped in,” or fight with another member for at least 52 seconds — a nod to the gang’s name — or until an older gang member steps in.

Each year, the gang celebrated “Five Deuce Day” on May 2, a ritual to remember deceased members and talk about gang-related matters.

In addition to the FBI, and LAPD, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, and Hawthorne, Pasadena and Inglewood police departments worked on the investigation. Some members of the gang have ties to San Bernardino, said San Bernardino police Lt. Rich Lawhead, and a police detective from that city aided the operation.

Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer said that in addition to the federal action, the city has filed three civil lawsuits targeting properties that are allegedly linked to the crimes. Two of the properties are near elementary schools, Feuer said.

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The presence of gangs in this pocket of South L.A. makes parents fearful to send their kids to school or to the park, said area councilman Curren Price. Nor do businesses want to invest in the area. The gangs “impact every part of the quality of life here,” Price said.